Strides Arcolab to buy Aspen's generics biz for Rs 1910 cr, shares rise 9%

Strides Arcolab today said it will acquire South Africa’s Aspen Pharmacare’s portfolio of branded and generics products in Australia for about Rs 1,910 crore.

Shares of Strides Arcolab surged as much as 9.30 per cent in intraday trade on Thursday. The stock ended in green, up 8.56 per cent or Rs 93.70 at Rs 1,187.9. The company’s market value rose by Rs. 558.74 crore to Rs. 7,081.74 crore.

The deal will facilitate re-entry of Strides in the Australian market.

In a BSE filing Strides Arcolab said: “Strides Pharma Global Pte. Ltd and Strides (Australia) Pharma Pty Ltd, Australia, both wholly-owned subsidiaries of Strides Arcolab have signed definitive agreement with certain wholly subsidiaries of Aspen Pharmacare to acquire a generic pharmaceutical business in Australia with certain branded pharmaceutical assets.”

It further said: “The consideration for the acquisition will be approximately Australian Dollar 380 million. The acquisition…include access to the product pipeline that was under development by Aspen and includes a number of major product launches in the next six months.”

Strides Arcolab Founder and Group CEO Arun Kumar said: “Aspen’s Australian generic pharmaceutical assets are a valuable and unique platform for Strides to rebuild its business in Australia.”

The portfolio of Aspen’s 130 products in Australia comprises generic pharmaceutical business together with certain branded pharmaceutical assets.

Australia’s pharmaceutical market is expected to grow to $32.1 billion by 2020 from $22.7 billion in 2013, according to market research firm Global Data, driven by rising health insurance cover and an increasing elderly population.

The deal also covers the sale by Aspen’s Mauritius unit of a portfolio of six branded prescription drugs to Strides’ Singapore business.

The company said that the acquired products has sales of Australian Dollar 120 million in the fiscal year ended June 2014. The Australian business will operate under the Arrrow Pharmaceuticals brand and will sell both prescription and non-prescription products, it said.

The transaction will be financed by a combination of internal accruals and debt financing. The transaction is expected to close by end of second quarter of 2015-16.

The moves are the latest in a series by Strides to streamline its portfolio of assets. It bought Chennai, India-based drug ingredients maker Shasun Pharmaceuticals Ltd for $200 million last September, while in 2013 it sold its injectable drugs unit, Agila Specialties, to US firm Mylan NV for about $1.6 billion.

This is the second time Strides is trying its luck in the Australian market. In 2012, Strides Arcolab exited the market by selling its entire stake in Ascent Pharmahealth, its subsidiary in that country, to Watson Pharmaceuticals for 375 million Australian dollars.

Agencies